Frequency of five Escherichia Coli pathotypes in Iranian adults and children with acute diarrhea

Sana Eybpoosh (1) , Saied Mostaan (2) , Mohammad Mehdi Gouya (3) , Hossein Masoumi-Asl (3) , Parviz Owlia (4) , Babak Eshrati (5) , Mohammad Reza Montazer Razavi Khorasan (3) , Saeid Bouzari (2)

1 Department of Epidemiology and Bio-statistics [Tehran, Iran]
2 Molecular Biology Department [Tehran, Iran]
3 MOHME - Ministry of Health and Medical Education [Tehran, Iran]
4 Shahed University [Téhéran]
5 SUMS - Shiraz University of Medical Sciences [Iran]

Background Knowledge about the distribution of Escherichia Coli (E. coli) pathotypes in Iran is limited. This nation-wide survey aims to provide a comprehensive description of the distribution of five pathogenic E. coli in Iran. Methods Stool samples were collected from 1,306 acute diarrhea cases from 15 provinces (2013–2014). E. coli-positive cultures underwent PCR testing for the detection of STEC, ETEC, EPEC, EAEC, and EIEC pathotypes. Pathotype frequency by province, age-group, and season was estimated. Results 979 diarrhea samples (75.0%) were culture-positive for E. coli (95% CI: 72.6, 77.3%), and 659 (50.5%) were pathogenic E. coli (95% CI: 47.8, 53.2%). STEC was the most frequent pathotype (35.4%). ETEC (14.0%) and EPEC (13.1%) were the second and the third most frequent pathotypes, respectively. EAEC (4.3%) and EIEC (0.3%) were not highly prevalent. Fars (88.7%) and Khorasan-e-Razavi (34.8%) provinces had the highest and lowest frequencies, respectively. E. coli pathotypes were more frequent in warmer than cooler seasons, showed the highest frequency among children under five years of age (73%), and had no significant association with participants’ gender. Conclusions Diarrheagenic E. coli may be an important cause of acute diarrhea in adults and children in Iran. STEC and ETEC seem to be widespread in the country with a peak in warmer seasons, impacting the recommended use of seasonal STEC and ETEC vaccines, especially in high-risk groups. Monitoring the incidence of E. coli pathotypes, serotypes, and antibiotic resistance over time is highly recommended for evaluation of interventions.

Domaines: Sciences du Vivant [q-bio]

Sana Eybpoosh, Saied Mostaan, Mohammad Mehdi Gouya, Hossein Masoumi-Asl, Parviz Owlia, et al.. Frequency of five Escherichia Coli pathotypes in Iranian adults and children with acute diarrhea. PLoS ONE, 2021, 16 (2), pp.e0245470. ⟨10.1371/journal.pone.0245470⟩. ⟨pasteur-03134218⟩